RMEF Rewards Allen with 5-Year Contract Extension

Coming off the most successful year in its 29-year history, the Rocky Mountain Elk Foundation and its board of directors rewarded David Allen with a five-year contract extension. Allen has served as president and CEO since 2007.

“David has done a wonderful job! Just everything we’ve seen has been way above what we ever expected,” said John Caid, outgoing RMEF board chairman. “We’ve been so pleased that we thought we definitely needed to make sure David knew we were happy with his performance.”

“We felt that by reviewing the contract and considering an extension at this time, rather than waiting until this time next year, would send a message to staff, volunteers, sponsors, vendors and all of our various audiences that we were pleased with the overall performance of the organization, including a five-year run at exceeding financial goals and looking at strong membership growth as well as strong development growth, thus sending a message of confidence in leadership for the future,” said Lee Swanson, RMEF chairman of the board.

Allen recently announced the creation of the $30 million Torstenson Family Endowment that will allow RMEF to vastly accelerate its mission to enhance the future of elk, other wildlife, their habitat and our hunting heritage. Under his leadership, RMEF surged to its fourth consecutive year of record membership, now standing at 196,079.

“I am very pleased to be staying on in this job for another five years,” said David Allen. “RMEF consists of the best folks in wildlife conservation and I am honored to work with them all.”

A lifelong conservationist with a zeal for elk and hunting, Allen eventually created his own sports marketing agency. He spent 33 years marketing pro rodeo, the Pro Bull Riders Tour and the Dale Earnhardt/Richard Childress race teams. He joined the RMEF board of directors in 2004 and became a life member in 2006. Allen also served on the Congressional Sportsmen’s Foundation board. He is currently serving a second term on the Wildlife Hunting Heritage Conservation Council and is a member of the executive committee of the Council to Advance Hunting and Shooting Sports.

“Overall, I think an observation by insiders and those looking at us from the outside would conclude that we have had five of the best years in the history of RMEF. And with help and oversight from the board of directors, we will have another great five years,” added Swanson.

“We changed our direction the last few years and we’re in a very positive spot as an organization and are headed in the right direction now,” said Caid.

“We have come a long ways in the last five years. We now have zero short-term debt, we have refocused on the principles the organization was originally founded on and we now have a very credible endowment fund to continue to grow our mission delivery,” added Allen. “It is a very exciting time to be at RMEF.”

Born and raised in Deadwood, S.D., Allen makes his home with his wife and two sons in Billings, Mont.